The 1974 Diplomatic Conference on Humanitarian Law: Some Observations

1975 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
David P. Forsythe
Keyword(s):  
World War I ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
World War ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
International Conference ◽  
Conventional Weapons ◽  
First Time

The 1974 Diplomatic Conference on the Reaffirmation and Development of International Humanitarian Law Applicable in Armed Conflicts was the first attempt by a full-fledged diplomatic conference in 25 years to create new law for the protection of victims of wars. It was also the first time in some 40 years that a diplomatic conference has taken up the question of restricting the use of conventional weapons. And it was the first time since before World War I that an international conference had looked extensively at the question of methods of attack and had weighed their impact on the civilian population.

Universal acceptance of international humanitarian law — Promotional activities of the ICRC

1994 ◽  
Vol 34 (302) ◽  
pp. 450-457 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans-Peter Gasser
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Cultural Property ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
International Conference ◽  
Geneva Conventions ◽  
Conventional Weapons ◽  
War Victims

In its Final Declaration of 1 September 1993, the International Conference for the Protection of War Victims inter alia urged all States to make every effort to:“Consider or reconsider, in order to enhance the universal character of international humanitarian law, becoming party or confirming their succession, where appropriate, to the relevant treaties concluded since the adoption of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, in particular:—the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts of 8 June 1977 (Protocol I);—the Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of Non-International Armed Conflicts of 8 June 1977 (Protocol II);—the 1980 Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons and its three Protocols;—The 1954 Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict”.

The Protection of Women in International Humanitarian Law

1985 ◽  
Vol 25 (249) ◽  
pp. 337-363 ◽  
Author(s):  
Françoise Krill
Keyword(s):  
World War I ◽  
Geneva Convention ◽  
Legal Protection ◽  
Prisoners Of War ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
World War ◽  
The Hague ◽  
Special Protection

Since the number of women who actually participated in war was insignificant until the outbreak of World War I, the need for special protection for them was not felt prior to that time. This does not imply however that women had previously lacked any protection. From the birth of international humanitarian law, they had had the same general legal protection as men. If they were wounded, women were protected by the provisions of the 1864 Geneva Convention for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded in Armies in the Field; if they became prisoners of war, they benefited from the Regulations annexed to the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 on the Laws and Customs of War on Land.

scholarly journals THE INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW APPLICABLE IN THE NEW TYPES OF ARMED CONFLICTS

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 184-193
Author(s):  
Nicolae David Ungureanu
Keyword(s):  
Second World War ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
World War ◽  
Modern Period ◽  
Second World

The international humanitarian law applicable in armed conflicts has evolved continuously since antiquity until today, its doctrinal writings pointing out during the modern period the influence that the progress of the concepts and the practices of war has had on the development of the normative conventions, especially the first and second world war, resulting in texts that are applicable even today.

The Geneva Humanitarian Law Conference 1975

1976 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 295-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. C. Green
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
International Conflicts ◽  
Conventional Weapons

The second session of the Diplomatic Conference on the Reaffirmation and Development of International Humanitarian Law applicable to Armed Conflicts met in Geneva from February 3 until April 18, 1975. The purpose of this session of the Conference was the adoption — or perhaps more correctly the successful drafting — of two Protocols to be added to the Geneva Red Cross Conventions of 1949, in order to protect further the victims of international and non-international conflicts respectively; it was also to consider proposals directed to the humanization of methods of warfare, including the prohibition or restriction of conventional weapons considered to be purely indiscriminate or likely to cause an amount of suffering disproportionate to the purpose of the armed conflict.

The Principle of Distinction Between Civilians and Combatants

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Melzer
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Practical Application ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Armed Actors

This chapter examines the provisions of international humanitarian law (IHL) concerning the distinction between legitimate military targets and persons protected against direct attacks. It explains that the practical application of the principle of distinction in contemporary armed conflicts has become increasingly difficult because of a number of factors. These include the growing asymmetry of military confrontations, the intermingling of armed actors with the civilian population, and the increasing involvement of civilians in the conduct of hostilities.

International humanitarian law and the challenges of contemporary armed conflicts: Recommitting to protection in armed conflict on the 70th anniversary of the Geneva Conventions

2019 ◽  
Vol 101 (911) ◽  
pp. 869-949
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
International Committee ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
70Th Anniversary ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
International Conference ◽  
Geneva Conventions ◽  
Areas Of Interest

This is the fifth report on international humanitarian law (IHL) and the challenges of contemporary armed conflicts prepared by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) for the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (International Conference). Similar reports were submitted to the International Conferences held in 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2015. The aim of all these reports is to provide an overview of some of the challenges posed by contemporary armed conflicts for IHL; generate broader reflection on those challenges; and outline current or prospective ICRC action, positions, and areas of interest.

An Exercise in the Development of International Law: The New ICRC Study on Customary International Humanitarian Law

2005 ◽  
Vol 6 (9) ◽  
pp. 1217-1242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Malcolm MacLaren ◽  
Felix Schwendimann
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Significant Contribution ◽  
International Committee ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
International Conference ◽  
High Level

On 17 March 2005, the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Jakob Kellenberger, presented a study (hereinafter “the Study”) of customary international humanitarian law (IHL). A decade earlier, the International Conference of the Red Cross and Red Crescent had mandated the ICRC to “prepare […] a report on customary rules of IHL applicable in international [IAC] and non-international armed conflicts [NIAC], and to circulate the report to States and competent international bodies.” The Study's objective was to capture a “photograph” of the existing, hitherto unwritten rules that make up customary IHL. Comprehensive, high-level research into customary IHL followed; the end result of which is undeniably a remarkable feat and a significant contribution to scholarship and debate in this area of international law.

Diplomatic Conference on the Reaffirmation and Development of International Humanitarian Law Applicable in Armed Conflicts (Summary of Work)

1974 ◽  
Vol 14 (158) ◽  
pp. 227-240
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
International Conference ◽  
Conference Centre ◽  
First Session

The first session of the Diplomatic Conference on the Reaffirmation and Development of International Humanitarian Law, which opened at the International Conference Centre, Geneva, on 20 February 1974, closed on 29 March.

Proportionality in International Humanitarian Law

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amichai Cohen ◽  
David Zlotogorski
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Civilian Population ◽  
State Actor ◽  
Principle Of Proportionality ◽  
Almost All

The principle of proportionality is one of the cornerstones of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). Almost all states involved in armed conflicts recognize that it is prohibited to launch an attack that is expected to cause incidental harm to civilians that exceeds the direct military advantage anticipated from the attack. This prohibition is included in military manuals, taught in professional courses, and accepted as almost axiomatic. And yet, the exact meaning of this principle is vague. Almost every issue is in dispute—from the most elementary question of how to compare civilian harm and military advantage, to the possible obligation to employ accurate but expensive weapons. Controversy is especially rife regarding asymmetrical conflicts, in which many modern democracies are involved. How exactly should proportionality be implemented when the enemy is not an army, but a non-state actor embedded within a civilian population? What does it mean to use precautions in attack, when almost every attack is directed at objects that are used for both military and civilian purposes?

Conference of Government Experts: Second Session

1975 ◽  
Vol 15 (172) ◽  
pp. 359-361
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Ad Hoc ◽  
International Committee ◽  
Secretary General ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Red Cross ◽  
General Assembly ◽  
International Humanitarian Law ◽  
Humanitarian Law ◽  
Conventional Weapons

In November 1974, the International Committee of the Red Cross sent governments a provisional mimeographed edition of the report on the work of the Conference of Government Experts on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons (Lucerne, 24 September-18 October 1974). This report was also sent to the United Nations Secretary-General, who transmitted it to the First Committee of the General Assembly, whose agenda contained the item: “Napalm and other incendiary weapons”. The printed edition was issued in January 1975, in English, French and Spanish, and was consulted by the Ad Hoc Committee on Weapons at the second session of the Diplomatic Conference on the Reaffirmation and Development of International Humanitarian Law Applicable in Armed Conflicts (Geneva, 3 February-18 April 1975).

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